Running on Empty
by caidanu
Summary: Itachi had almost gone through with it, but how could he look into his little's brother's eyes and leave Sasuke to deal with the aftermath?


Itachi could feel his harsh breathing as he ran towards his destination. He could feel Sasuke's arms begin to slip form his shoulders. "Sasuke, hold onto me tight." He ordered as he felt his brother's hands grip his neck harder. "We need to hurry okay? So, I need you to listen to everything I tell you."

Itachi knew that neither of them would have much time. The entire Uchiha council would soon discover that he had run away and took Sasuke with him. There would be severe punishment if he was captured. Sasuke was far too young to be punished and most likely would be spared, but in some ways, Itachi thought that it would be far worse on his little brother to grow up without him. He knew that without him there to protect Sasuke from the rest of the Uchiha his little brother would grow up to be just like them, hungry for power and control, uncaring how his actions would impact the rest of the village.

Itachi also understood that the Konoha elders knew what the Uchiha clan was up to, they knew their plans. He had been asked to slaughter his entire family with the condition that he could spare Sasuke but in the end, every time he looked at the innocence and trust that radiated off of Sasuke's small face he knew he could never betray his brother in that way. He almost had, though, for a brief moment he had almost gone through with it. For one split second he had thought that maybe…maybe Sasuke would be able to grow up strong and become a hero for Konoha.

Of course he had had every intention of making Sasuke believe that he was a murderous uncaring sociopath. Itachi had decided that if he was really going to go through with it, kill half of his own soul for the sake of his little brother and the village, then he didn't want to live, and he felt that Sasuke had the right to be the one to kill him. He had everything all figured out, he had agreed to the terms and the role of destroying the Uchiha clan but then something had happened the other night, something seemingly small and insignificant.

Sasuke used to have problems with nightmares every night when he was four years old and they had lasted a couple of years before it became a rare occurrence. Of course Itachi's role as big brother during this time had consisted of allowing a very distraught, teary eyed Sasuke to climb into bed with him afterwards. He never minded really, Sasuke was his little brother, and Itachi had honestly wished he had someone to comfort him when had been small and had gone through the same thing. But that was something that Sasuke hadn't done for a few years so Itachi wasn't expecting his little brother to come tearing into his room a few nights ago.

That in itself probably wouldn't have stopped him from going through with the massacre. Itachi had already had himself talked into it. He had convinced himself that it was for the best, and that he was doing it for Sasuke so that his little brother could have a better life. He had been foolish to ever believe that was the case. It was amazing what a person could convince themselves if they are desperate enough and looking for some type of rationalization for their actions. He had it all figured out so it was a surprise to him that when Sasuke came bursting through his door and into his room he felt his heart clench at the thought of leaving his brother.

What had really floored Itachi, though, wasn't that Sasuke had had a nightmare…no nightmares happened to everyone occasionally. It was what Sasuke's nightmare had been about. After calming Sasuke down Itachi had been shocked to find out that Sasuke had dreamt that he had gone insane and killed their entire family and clan. He couldn't believe that Sasuke had a dream that mirrored what he had been about to do in a few days. The look on his little brother's face, the distraught look that Sasuke gave as his brother begged him to never do anything like that…it broke Itachi's heart.

He knew then and there, as he held Sasuke close, that there was no way he would be able to go through with it. That night had been enough to give him a glimpse into what would happen if he killed their entire clan and family. Sasuke wouldn't be able to handle it well at all. Itachi supposed that it made sense when he really stopped and thought about it. He had just been so used to pushing his own feelings and emotions deep inside of him that he had momentarily forgotten that Sasuke wasn't the same way. His little brother wasn't an ANBU, Sasuke never had to deal with killing another human before, and he didn't have the same type of responsibilities that had been forced on Itachi at such a young age.

He had been so caught up in the idea of protecting Sasuke that he had forgotten that he would have only ended up breaking his brother instead of helping him. And he knew, Itachi knew that Sasuke would survive and grow strong but at what cost. Would his brother be left a hollow, bitter shell of a human, unable to form attachments or bonds. Hell bent on the soul purpose of avenging the murder of everyone he held dear. A massacre caused by the one person that was supposed to look out for him and that he could trust the most. Itachi knew that he never wanted to find out what Sasuke would turn into.

He understood that he had always been the different out of the Uchihas, the black sheep of the family who didn't believe in using power to achieve his goals. The only other Uchihas who were the same as him had been Obito and Shisui. And Obito had died trying to protect his teammates while his cousin had died so Itachi could live. Sasuke on the other hand, even though Sasuke was still young Itachi could see his brother's drive to out do him, to gain power and recognition. It always made him feel bad when he thought how Sasuke would most likely grow up to be like the rest of the Uchiha clan. It saddened Itachi to know that one day they would end up estranged.

It was inevitable, though, with the way the two of them were starting to be compared. He knew that it bothered Sasuke to be second best and Itachi never understood why something like that would even matter. But it did matter, he was a prodigy, he had never asked to be as good as he was but that was the hand that life had dealt him, unfortunately it also meant that Sasuke was doomed to forever walk in his shadow. Maybe things would be different now that he was taking Sasuke away. He could raise his little brother the way he felt was right.

"Itachi…" He felt Sasuke's small hands squeeze his neck. "Where are we going and why can't mother and father come with us?"

Itachi had dreaded the questions that he knew Sasuke would ask him. "We're going far away otouto, there are some people who want to pull us apart and this is the only way to make sure that you are safe. Mother and father can't come with us…they would only try to stop me."

And Itachi knew that it was true. His parents would never understand, they would only tell the rest of the clan and that would mean war for Konoha, a lot of innocent people would only end up getting killed. But know that he wasn't the one who would eradicate his clan that only meant that Danzou would find someone else to do it and in the end Sasuke would end up dead with the rest of them. His brother was only to be spared on the condition that he was the one to take on the mission, now that he changed his mind all deals would be off.

"But if mother and father are against it then doesn't it mean it's wrong Itachi?" Sasuke quietly asked him.

"Trust in me Sasuke, that's all I can ask from you." Itachi let out a heavy sigh. "I need you to trust that I know what I'm doing, our lives depend on it okay. Can you do that for me Sasuke?"

"I trust you, Itachi but shouldn't we at least say goodbye so that they don't worry about us." Itachi could feel Sasuke's body shake and was certain that he also felt wet droplets falling onto his neck.

"I'm sorry Sasuke but there's no time for that. We have to leave to now." And they did need to leave. Their parents were in a meeting with the other clan members, he had told them that he had ANBU duties to attend to but if they stuck around much longer someone would surely notice that Sasuke was missing as well.

He couldn't afford to let that happen. Itachi was already unsure of where they were headed, it would have to be somewhere safe where they wouldn't be noticed. He would be a missing Nin after tonight so he would also have to make sure to cover their tracks well and hopefully he could take Sasuke away where they would never be found. Somewhere peaceful where they wouldn't have to live their lives as ninja or with the worry or war and killing, but that would be for him to worry about later, right now he had to concentrate on the task at hand. He tightened his grip on Sasuke's hands and hoped that he was doing the right thing.

Itachi looked back one last time as a lone tear ran down his cheek. "Goodbye mother and father." He whispered softly into the night. He tightened his grip on Sasuke as he began their descent out of Konoha, no one noticing the two figures slipping quietly away into the night.


End file.
